Felony conviction of Wurld Media officer affirmed in Appellate Court

The State Supreme Court, Third Department, affirmed the felony conviction of Richard Saxton, a former officer of Wurld Media, Inc. of falsifying business records in the first degree, according to Saratoga County District Attorney James Murphy.

Saxton was convicted after a jury trial in 2008 of charges related to the company having improperly listed payroll advances paid to employees as loans, not payroll, according to information from Murphy's office. In the Supreme Court decision on Thursday, July 8, the court found Saxton's conviction was supported by legally sufficient evidence and credited proof presented by prosecutors that Saxton, who supervised Wurld Media's general ledger, executed tax documents and administered advances and payroll to employees in 2006, according to information from Murphy's office.

The court also found that the sentence imposed at the jury trial--six months in county jail, five years probation and a $5,000 fine, was appropriate and not \harsh or excessive, according to information from Murphy's office.

The court also vacated and dismissed Saxton's conviction on a labor law charge as being preempted by federal law and reversed Saxton's conviction on a misdemeanor charge of second degree criminal contempt and remitted to a lower court.

"We were confident the jury's verdict of guilty would stand ... the victims of this crime can rest assured that justice has been served," said Murphy in a statement.

Murphy also said the misdemeanor charge that was remanded for a new trial would not be a good use of resources and that his office is in the process of having Saxton turn himself in to begin his sentence.